


A Wonderful, Incredible, Imperfect Human Being

by littlelovelyspiderling



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Domestic Avengers, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Irondad, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Platonic Relationships, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Precious Peter Parker, Spider-Man: Far From Home (Movie), Spider-Man: Homecoming (Movie), Tickling, Ticklish Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, pete is a sad self-deprecating boi and tony tickles him to make him happy the end, sorta - Freeform, spiderson, ticklish!peter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:34:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25231699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlelovelyspiderling/pseuds/littlelovelyspiderling
Summary: Peter feels useless, like he’s failing everyone he cares about. While trying to comfort the kid, Tony Stark discovers the perfect way to cheer him up.
Relationships: Peter Parker & May Parker (Mentioned), Peter Parker & Ned Leeds (mentioned), Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 2
Kudos: 112





	A Wonderful, Incredible, Imperfect Human Being

“You okay, Pete?”

When the kid didn’t answer him, Tony gave his shoulder a shake. Peter started, nearly knocking his web-shooters to the floor, and looked up at him.

“Huh? What?”

“Are you okay?” he asked again. “You seem, I don’t know, distracted. Tired. Less bouncy and hyperactive than normal.” He patted his head. “I thought you were excited about this. You’re the one who wasn’t satisfied with my work and decided you just _had_ to add your own upgrades to your web-shooters, remember?”

Peter looked stung by his words, which surprised him. He turned back to the devices on the table, his expression clouding over.

“Yeah,” he said. “Sorry.” He fiddled absentmindedly with the triggers. “Just not really feeling it today.”

_Not really feeling it today._ By now Tony knew that was code for something very bad. He had not, however, learned the perfect approach to situations like this just yet. The whole ‘mentoring-a-super-powered-protege-but-also-having-to-deal-with-him-being-a-15-year-old-teenager’ was still a bit of a gray area for him, with new challenges to face around every corner. Peter Parker was an amazingly smart and hard-working mentee, but he was still a kid. A kid in high school. That was the part that always tripped Stark up.

But he cared for the young hero. Tony hated seeing him down in the dumps. So, ever since half the universe had disintegrated then come back to life, Stark had tasked himself to do what he could to lift Peter’s spirits whenever they were dampened, despite how out of character it felt. He stood beside him, tilting his head to the side.

“Is there…a reason for that?” he asked cautiously. Peter swallowed, not looking up from the table.

“I…” he began. He rubbed at his forearm and bit his lip. “I don’t know. I’ve just been feeling kind of useless lately.”

“Useless?” Tony repeated. “A kid that can climb walls and write a research paper on thermonuclear astrophysics like it’s fourth grade science— _useless?”_

“I forgot Ned’s birthday,” he said, voice breaking. He bent his head towards the ground. “I’ve missed four Decathlon practices in the past two months. I let a stupid rookie burglar get away last night after he hurt two boys. May asked me to get groceries on Tuesday, but I forgot the milk. I can’t even pick up _groceries_ right, Mr. Stark. I feel like I’m failing everybody I care about. I’m useless. I keep disappointing all the people who depend on me, and I don’t know what to…I can’t…”

Tears welled in his eyes. He breathed in sharp, raspy breaths. Tony's heart split in two as he watched Peter break. These were the times when he was supposed to have the right answer, the perfect thing to say to make everything better. He wrapped an arm around his shoulders, guiding him out of the stool.

“Hey, come here. Come on.”

Sniffling, Peter slid out of the seat. He let Stark walk him to the couch by the wall, hating himself for crying in front of his idol, hating himself for coming up short on all of his responsibilities, hating himself for not being enough. He sat, and Tony sat beside him, resting a palm on his back.

“Listen to me, okay?” Peter looked up at him with red-rimmed eyes, tears slipping down his cheeks. “You, Mr. Parker, are an amazing little person. You’ve got more goodness and bravery in you than all of the Avengers combined, and the biggest heart for helping others I’ve ever seen.” After a small hesitation, he started running his hand up and down his back, trying his best to calm the troubled teen. “But even the greatest of heroes aren’t perfect. You know that. Everybody fails, especially after going through everything you’ve dealt with. And if the people you care about can’t forgive you for making a few mistakes, then they don’t deserve you.”

Peter dropped his gaze, burning with a mixture of shame and gratitude, wiping messily at his eyes.

“Don’t ever call yourself useless, Peter. Nobody who knows you ever thinks that. You are a wonderful, incredible, imperfect human being. Own the mistakes you make, learn from them, and move on. Okay?”

“Okay,” he said quietly. He combed a hand through his hair, puffing out his cheeks. “I—I’m sorry, Mr. Stark.”

“Don’t apologize,” Tony insisted. “I get it. It’s tough.”

“It’s just weirder now, after everything. I feel so out of sync with the world. Stuff that used to come so naturally to me now just—”

Out of nowhere, Peter flinched, jolting upright, as if he’d been electrocuted. Tony blinked in surprise.

“Whoa, what’s wrong?” he asked, moving his hand to his shoulder. “You just jumped, like, a foot off the couch.”

Peter shook his head, looking a tad startled. “N-nothing, nothing, sorry.” He rolled his shoulders and arched his spine, as if he had a crick in his back. “Just, um, a little sore.”

“Did you take a big hit recently?” Stark applied gentle pressure to his shoulder blades, feeling for any bumps or knots. “I have a masseuse lady who can turn all your muscles to jelly. She’s approved by every Avenger except Banner, but he claims massages make him anxious.”

“No, that’s okay,” Peter said, jerking away from his touch. “I just need to stretch more.”

Tony narrowed his eyes. “Why are you so twitchy all of sudden? Am I hurting you? Where were you hit?” He gave his lower back a small squeeze, and Peter squeaked.

“Stohop it!” he yelped, hopping to his feet. “I’m—I’m fine, okay?”

“Well obviously you’re not. What’s your problem?”

A hint of pink rose in the young hero’s cheeks. “I just—I don’t like people touching my back is all. It feels…weird.”

“Weird? Weird how?”

Peter shrugged, crossing his arms. “I…I don’t know. Weird. I can’t explain it. It’s no big deal.”

Tony studied the kid amusedly, the way he was staring off to the side and flushing redder and redder and guarding himself with both arms. Gradually, the pieces clicked together in his mind.

“Weird like you’re ticklish?” he inquired. Peter looked up sharply, eyes flashing wide.

“What?” he stammered. “Oh, n-no, not like that. Something else. Definitely something else.”

“So you’re not ticklish?” Tony said. After a tiny pause, Peter shook his head. Tony smiled.

“Well, then this certainly is peculiar.” He stood from the couch, causing the kid to wince back just barely. “But don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of it.”

Peter blinked. “The bottom of what?” he asked, pressing his arms a little bit tighter to chest.

“Of what’s wrong with your back, of course.” Tony reached out and gripped Peter’s shoulder. “We have to figure out what’s making it feel weird so we can fix it.”

The red in his cheeks bled into his ears. “No. We really don’t. I’m fine, Mr. Stark.”

“But something could be seriously wrong.” he insisted. He turned him around. “Making peace with yourself means admitting that you have flaws. And then telling others so they can help you overcome them. I know this seems small, but trust me: taking some time to improve something little about yourself is a great first step towards overall happiness.”

“Mr. Stark…” Peter protested sheepishly, but it was too late. Tony started rubbing all over his back, squeezing his shoulders and sides, causing him to cringe.

“Now, be honest with me, kid: what feels weird and why?”

A huge bubble of giggles immediately swelled inside his throat. Peter pursed his lips and held his eyes shut, fighting the urge to wrench away.

“Ihit…f-feels reheally…” A squeal escaped him when Stark tweaked his hip. He spun around before he could stop himself, batting his hands away. “Quihit it!”

“Peter, I’m trying to help you,” Tony huffed impatiently, but by now the facade was long broken. A mischievous flicker gleamed in his eyes, and a playful smirk pulled at his lips. “Just tell me what’s wrong.”

The two were at a standoff. Peter stood frozen a moment longer before bolting in the opposite direction. Strangely, Tony anticipated this. He snagged his arm before he could escape, yanking him back and catching him around the middle. High-pitched giggles started pouring from the kid’s lips before Stark even laid a finger on him, which he thought was quite adorable.

“Noho! Mr. Stark! Pleehease don’t!” He kicked and shrieked like a little kid. Tony snorted.

“Nobody solves their problems by running away from them, Peter.” He dumped the young hero on the couch, curling his hands into claws. “You’ve got to learn to face them head-on.”

With that, Tony pounced on him, scurrying his fingers up and down the kid’s sides. Immediately, Peter burst into hysterical laughter, scrunching into a ball and squirming like crazy. Stark chuckled along with the giggly teen, endeared by his childlike response. He never knew Spider-Man was so ticklish, and now he was curious how he didn’t realize it sooner.

“Wahait! Pleeheehease! Ahahaha!” He bucked and twitched and laughed helplessly, burying his face between the cushions.

“I’m confused here, Pete,” Stark said, squeezing his ribs and poking at his underarms. “I thought you said you _weren’t_ ticklish. If being ticklish isn’t what’s causing this, what else could it be?”

“Stahahap it!” he squealed, voice muffled. The teasing only made him blush more.

“But look how happy you are. This is the exact kind of cheering up you need!” Tony changed his approach, wrapping both hands around the kid’s scrawny torso and drilling his entire midsection with tickles. Peter screeched, trying desperately to guard himself, but failing miserably.

“Ehahaha _shihihit!”_ he cried, quaking with laughter. If the embarrassment didn’t kill him, the unstoppable giggling certainly would. “Oho gahad, ohokay! You wihihin, Mr. Stark! I’m tihicklish! Now stahahap it! Pleasepleasepleehease _pleeheehease!_ ”

Tony chuckled. “Really? You think so? No way!” He shoved his hands through the kid’s defenses and scribbled his fingers against his belly. “I can’t believe you lied to me, after all I’ve done to brighten your mood. Now you’re _really_ gonna get it.”

Peter rolled on to his side, laughing wildly. “Nohohaha! I tohold the truhuth! You’re suhupposed to let me gohohahaAHAHAAA!”

The kid’s frantic movements had left him vulnerable, and Stark made him pay for it. He snaked a hand up his shirt and started clawing at his defenseless tummy and sides, sending Peter into an instant frenzy. He thrashed and squirmed, grappling at Tony’s wrists, shrieking with laughter, which only exposed more of his tickle spots to his mentor’s evils fingers. Stark liked being playful with the kid. It brought out sides of both of them that had grown increasingly scarce.

“EHAHAHAHA! NOHOHO!” When Tony slipped his other hand up to his armpit, Peter was pretty much down for. All he could do was laugh and twitch, face beat-red and eyes brimming with tears.

“I’ll stop on one condition,” Stark said, wrecking the kid with the most sinister tickle tactics he knew, chuckling at how easy it was to render him a giggly, helpless blob. “I want you to say, out loud, that you’re a wonderful, incredible, imperfect human being who deserves all the happiness in the world. Say that, and I’ll stop.”

Peter laughed and squeaked, hiccups jumping from his lips and wracking his entire frame. He shook his head, eyes squeezed shut. “I C-CAHAN’T! PLEEHEASE! AHAHAHA!”

Tony shrugged. “Well, then I guess I’m never stopping. This is your life now, kid.” He switched between tickling every one of Peter’s ribs and grinding his knuckles into his entire ribcage. The kid was worn into giggly shambles. His entire body was tinted pink.

“AHAHAHEHEHELP!” he pleaded. “OHO _KAHAHAY_ HAHAHA! IHI’M EHAHAWAHANDERFUHUHAHA!” He whipped his head from side to side, every word sputtering from his lips swallowed up by uncontrollable laughter. This was actual torture.

“You’ve got this! You can do it!” Stark moved his tickle attack back down to his sides, teasing them with no less enthusiasm but knowing that if he stayed on Peter’s more ticklish spots, the poor kid might never get the words out. Peter jumped and yelped at his every touch like his fingers were full of sparks.

“SHUHUT UHUHUP!” he laughed. “OHOKAY, I—IHI’M AHA WAHANDERFUHUL IHIMPERFECT THIHIHING WHO HAHAS—WHOOHOO WAHANTS—WAHAHAIT—THE WORHORLD’S HAPPINEHEHESS, OR—?” Peter pealed into a fit of delirious giggling. “OHO GAHAHAD! I CAHAN’T REMEHEMBER! EHAHAHAHAAA!”

Tony smiled at the winded teenager. “Close enough,” he said. For the finale, right before letting him off the hook, Stark pulled up his shirt and blew a big, fat, monstrous raspberry into his exposed tummy. Peter all but screamed, flailing like a fish out of water, wrenching away and burrowing deep into the corner of the couch. He continued to giggle long after Tony had stopped tickling him.

“You know, I told you before that you’re never useless. But we both have to admit—tickling kinda makes you a _little_ bit useless. You go from a big, strong superhero to a puddle of giggles in seconds.” He patted his head, chuckling softly. “But in every other aspect, you’re anything but useless. I hope you know that. Except cooking. Your aunt says you suck at that, too.”

“Ihi can’t breeheeheathe…” Peter wheezed, flopping on to his back. “Uhugh. You're _ehevil,_ Mr. Stark…”

Tony snapped his fingers. “Oh, good point. If I ever want you to stay away from a top-tier bad guy, I’ll make sure to to tell them your weakness to ensure you steer clear of them.” He stood and poked him in the side to punctuate his threat, making the kid flinch and squeal. “See? You’re _so_ useful. Keep up the great work, bud. I’ll be in the lab if you need me.”

Stark left the room, working for thirty minutes. For that whole chunk of time, the kid never showed. Perhaps he was mad at him. When Tony went back up to check on Peter, he was in the exact same spot he had left him. Bundled up on the couch, knees pulled to his chest, except now he was sleeping. He walked up to him, watching his chest rise and fall with slow, steady breaths, a smile lifting the corners of his lips.

Peter Parker, everyone. A wonderful, incredible, perfect human being.


End file.
